1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a spacer-printing apparatus and a method of printing a spacer, and more particularly, to a spacer-printing apparatus and a method of printing a spacer, which are capable of reducing the cost of manufacturing a display panel.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
A liquid crystal display (LCD) apparatus includes an LCD panel showing images by using light transmissivity of liquid crystal and may include a backlight assembly disposed under the LCD panel and applying light to the LCD panel.
The LCD panel may include a first substrate, a second substrate, a liquid crystal layer, a seal line and a spacer. Thin film transistors are disposed on the first substrate. The second substrate includes a color fitter and faces the first substrate. The liquid crystal layer is disposed between the first and second substrates. The seat line disposed between the first and second substrates seals the liquid crystal layer. The spacer between the first and second substrates maintains a cell gap between the first and second substrates.
Methods of forming a liquid crystal layer may include an injection method and a dropping method.
According to the dropping method, the seal line and the spacers are disposed, for example, on the second substrate. The liquid crystal is dropped, for example, on the first substrate. Then, the first and second substrates are assembled in a vacuum.
The spacers may be printed, for example, on the second substrate by a printing roller having a cylindrical shape. However, when the LCD panel becomes larger in size, the second substrate also becomes larger in size. As a result, a radius of the printing roller becomes larger.
When a radius of the printing roller becomes larger, volume and weight of the printing roller is increased. The increase of equipment size increases manufacturing cost. In addition, due to the large size of the printing roller, when spacers on the printing roller are transcribed onto the second substrate, the spacers are not stably transcribed onto the second substrate, and remain on a printing board.